This application is to request funding for the 2011 Gordon Research Conference on Catecholamines at Bates College in Lewiston, ME, August 7-12, 2011. The 2011 Gordon Research Conference on Catecholamines will take place in Lewiston, ME in August 2011. This small conference, held every other year, is an ideal forum for exploring new developments in the field of catecholamines. It is also an excellent opportunity for junior investigators and trainees to interact with established investigators in a relaxed atmosphere. The evaluations of recent conferences highlight the strong impact this meeting typically has on emerging as well as established scientists. As the funds allocated by the Gordon Conference organization are limited, we are requesting funding from other sources. We are hoping that the results of our requests enable us to support speakers and discussion leaders as well as a large number of junior investigators to participate in the meeting. The conference includes two plenary talks, by Dr. Peter Kalivas and Dr. Barry Everitt. The preliminary program includes a large number of junior scientists and women, and the sessions planned include: 1) Advances in Catecholamine Methods, 2) Catecholamines and Synaptic Transmission, 3) Catecholamines in Reward and Drug Addiction, 4) Cognitive Effects of Catecholamines, 5) Catecholamines in Neuropsychiatic Disorders, 6) Neuroethology and Catecholamines, 7) Catecholamines: Secretory Mechanisms, 8) Catecholamines and Epigenetics and 9) Catecholamines and Learning. The themes covered in the 2011 Gordon Conference on Catecholamines are highly relevant to understanding the neurobiological bases of drug addiction and a variety of neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders including schizophrenia, affective disorders, bipolar disorder, OCD, and Parkinson's disease. This forum will provide a unique opportunity to discuss recent advances in the understanding of how catecholamine systems may contribute to the pathophysiology and treatment of those conditions. The fact that a large proportion of the participants are junior investigators and a significant number will be graduate students and postdocs ensure that this conference may have an impact on how future generations of neuroscientists view these issues. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: This application is to request funding for the 2011 Gordon Research Conference on Catecholamines at Bates College in Lewiston, ME, August 7-12, 2011. The catecholamines dopamine (DA), norepinephrine (NE) and epinephrine play critical roles in the peripheral and central nervous systems, and alterations in catecholamine function result in human disease states including cardiovascular disease and neuropsychiatric disorders such as drug addiction, Parkinson's Disease, schizophrenia, depression, and ADHD. The 2011 Catecholamine Gordon Conference will illuminate leading research in catecholamine neurobiology as well as catecholamine function and dysfunction that can lead to novel advances in our understanding of human disease states.